The Nak Muay clan
Nak Muay is the Thai term for a Muay Thai fighter, and the clan screen's "Muay Thai fighters: knees, elbows and clinches." is a fair summary. Their finishers stay close; their ultimate, called with a shout of "Eight Limbs!", counts every limb on screen.
Mongkhon, gloves and wraps
Nak Muay fighters have tan skin, red shorts and red gloves, red armbands, a white belt and white leg wraps. On the head they wear a mongkhon, the headband Muay Thai fighters traditionally wear into the ring, drawn here with two red tails. One of their two win poses is the wai, the Thai greeting with the palms pressed together; the other is a raised fist.
The twelve names are short Thai nicknames: Chai, Kiet, Petch, Saen, Yod, Nok, Lek, Dam, Tong, Kaew, Rung and Sing. As with Sumo and Samurai, the plural is the same word, so the game talks about "the Nak Muay" for the whole side.
Knees and elbows
Muay Thai is known for strikes that many other striking sports ban, and all three finishers use them. Flying knee is a crouch and then a slow-motion leap that leads with the knee, leaving afterimages (KNEE!). It throws the defender further than the other two.
Spinning elbow steps in close and turns: a slow-motion backward spin brings the elbow round into the defender (CRACK!). Clinch knees is the most recognisably Muay Thai of the three. The fighter steps in and grabs the defender's neck, CLINCH! appears, three alternating knees land with hit-stops and ink splats, and a fourth, bigger knee in slow motion ends it (THUD!). The narration: "Petch locks Sketch in the clinch and drives in the knees."
Eight Limbs, counted
Muay Thai is often called the art of eight limbs, for fists, elbows, knees and shins, and the ultimate takes the name literally. The master throws eight strikes in order, each lasting 75 milliseconds: a jab, a cross, two elbows, two knees from the clinch and two round kicks. Each one throws sparks and a number floats up from 1 to 8, so you can count along. The whole sequence takes just over half a second, and then the game slows down for a final flying knee (KAPOW!).
A Nak Muay that loses crumples into a ball of paper and is thrown off the board in a shower of scraps, the same knockout as the Karatekas and Storm Ninjas.
In badminton: aimed at the body
On the court the Nak Muay's powers are all about contact. Spinning Elbow (3 uses) loads a shot with elbow force: whoever returns it is knocked back to their baseline, which leaves the front of their court open for your next drop. Clinch Pull (2 uses) does the reverse, dragging the opponent to the net and sending your next shot over their head.
The badminton Eight Limbs is a shot aimed straight at the opponent. A red target ring marks where they are standing, "fist!", "elbow!", "knee!" and "shin!" pop up in quick succession, then HOLD YOUR GROUND! appears, and the receiver is dizzy for two seconds. The tell is "Aimed right at you. Hold your ground!" It is good advice: the shot is coming to where you already stand, and when the computer misreads it, it runs sideways.
Played by the computer, Nak Muay smash more than any other clan and aim at your body more often than any other clan. Expect smashes aimed at where you stand rather than at the lines.
Picking the Nak Muay
Pick the Nak Muay for short, close-range fights with lots of contact, and for the one ultimate in the game that keeps count of its own hits.